


Woe

by Hyx_Sydin



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Angst, M/M, One-Sided Love, Post-Series
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-13
Updated: 2014-09-02
Packaged: 2018-02-08 16:44:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1948608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hyx_Sydin/pseuds/Hyx_Sydin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The team loses someone; the dead kind of losing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Tags will be updated as the story progresses!

“John’s dead McKay! Now c’mon, we gotta go!”

Rodney’s brain got stuck on the words: **John is dead**. He was crouched behind the DHD, gun in hand, frozen. In the background he heard Teyla radio in that they were under fire, that it would just be herself, Rodney and Ronon coming through. Suddenly a hand clamped onto his shoulder and he sluggishly turned to see Ronon crouched in front of him, mouth moving but Rodney could not make out anything he was saying. The other man’s expression went from frustration to worry and then Rodney was being dragged forward and pulled through the wormhole. When the tugging stopped, he dazedly realised they were now in the gate room, and that Woolsey was making his way quickly down towards them. It was then that his knees gave out under him, Ronon grabbing his arm just in time to ease him to the ground, as the words finally made sense: **John Sheppard - Lieutenant Colonel, military leader of Atlantis - the very best friend he had ever had, was dead, deceased, lifeless . . . gone!**


	2. Chapter 2

Teyla, Ronon, Major Lorne and a squad of marines took a puddlejumper back to the planet in order to retrieve Colonel Sheppard’s body as Doctor McKay was escorted by Doctor Keller to the infirmary. Richard Woolsey made a quick trip to the reconstructed Midway Station in order to inform Stargate Command of Atlantis’ loss. By the time he returned, the retrieval team was already back – unsuccessful. They had scanned and searched the area around the Stargate to no avail; there was no sign of the people who had attacked them and the Colonel’s body was gone. After Lorne’s report a lull descended on those gathered until McKay came bursting into the conference room demanding a squadron of puddlejumpers be sent through to scan the entire planet and the space surrounding it to look for any sign of their attackers. He also demanded that a search team be sent to search the area where they had been attacked, as well as that whichever of the SGC’s spaceships was closest to be redirected in order to assist. Woolsey agreed to the first two demands as long as they started their searches the next day, leaving it to Lorne to coordinate, but could not agree to the third as the Apollo was already in the Milky Way after its recent supply run to Atlantis.

When the ground team returned after 12 hours, Ronon (who led the team) reported that although there were signs of the firefight there was nothing else; no clues as to what happened to the people that had attacked them or where they had come from or even who they were, and nothing to indicate what had happened to Sheppard’s body – not even disturbed dirt to show where it had fallen. When the puddle jumper squadron returned, night had already fallen over Atlantis, and Lorne’s report was similar to Ronon’s; they found nothing – no signs of people or ships.

When Rodney demanded that the search be expanded to cover the entire solar system, Woolsey said no.


	3. Chapter 3

The memorial service was held several days later and all of Atlantis gathered in the gate room for it. All except one – Doctor Rodney McKay took a puddlejumper out to John’s favourite surfing beach which was the only reason the planet had been chosen as the landing place for Atlantis – something Rodney had to justify through scientific means before Woolsey would agree to it. 

Night has already fallen by the time he returns to the city, and yet Woolsey still calls him up to his office. He asks Rodney to pack up John’s things; Rodney glares at him, lips pressed together in answer. He then asks Rodney if he would be willing to inform John’s brother of his death; Rodney jumps out of his seat and storms out of the room.

\---

Two mornings later Rodney, Ronon and Teyla place their luggage on one of the bench seats in the rear compartment of a puddlejumper before making their way around the foot locker two marines have placed in the middle of its floor space. Rodney dials the Midway Station and then the ship automatically makes its way to the gate room where Atlantis’ soldiers stand at attention; saluting as one as Rodney eases the ship through the wormhole.


	4. Chapter 4

The crunch of gravel had him peeking through a window to see who would visit so early on a weekend morning. The sight that greeted him sent a chill down his spine; two Air Force officers in full uniform disembarked from the first vehicle, a sight he had been hoping never to see. Stepping back he took a deep breath suddenly glad his wife and kids were not currently home, then made his way downstairs.

In total there were five people: General Jack O’Neill and Colonel Samantha Carter were accompanied by three others, all civilians; Teyla Emmagan, Doctor Rodney McKay and the familiar Ronon Dex. After inviting them into the sitting room, he wasted no time in asking them if his brother was dead - their reactions were enough of an answer for him.

Col. Carter then explained that he was being given the opportunity to know exactly what John had been doing these past few years, and without even thinking about it, he signed the nondisclosure agreement. She then opened the bag she was carrying and handed him five discs all labelled ‘The Stargate Program – A Brief Introduction’ and motioned towards the television.

What he saw blew his mind – each segment was an hour long and covered a variety of topics from wormholes to space exploration to alien invasions and many more. Between discs three and four he offered his guests something to drink and snacks, taking the time to wrap his head around the fact that John had been travelling via wormholes to other planets, meeting friendly aliens and fighting the bad ones. Until he played the fourth disc and discovered that not only had his brother been living in an alien city - the lost city of Atlantis to be exact - but that the city itself was in another galaxy. The real shocker was finding out that John had not been just another soldier, but the military commander of the expedition and tasked with keeping both the city and all of its inhabitants safe.

Dave mourned never having gotten to truly know the man proudly showing off Atlantis and all her wonders on the video he was watching.

After watching the fifth disc, he handed them back to the Colonel with a quiet thank you, then sat back in his armchair and contemplated the ceiling. A quiet moment passed and then someone cleared their throat, turning his head to look in that direction Dave’s eyes were caught and held by a pair of warm green eyes as Ronon Dex began to speak; slowly explaining what had happened on the day that John died. Dave found he could not speak when the tale ended, simply nodded in gratitude as he wondered at the level of commitment demonstrated by the people of Atlantis to find John’s body and the people who had killed him.

Only then did the General speak, quietly informing him of the other reason for their visit; to watch the recorded version of John’s will.


	5. Chapter 5

_My name is John Sheppard; I am a Lieutenant Colonel with the United States Air Force, and this is my Last Will and Testament._

 

_Before I get to what is considered the important part... I put in a request that if I die over in the Pegasus Galaxy, that Dave Sheppard, my younger brother, be granted the security clearance needed so that someone can tell him about the Stargate Program and how I actually died; this is the one thing I’d like him to truly know about my life. If they refuse, I’ve written a letter I’d like given to him instead._

 

_The first time I had to do this, before we stepped through the Stargate to what we hoped would be Atlantis; Dave, his wife and kids were the only family I had, and despite the fact that we weren’t close, I left everything to them. Now, things are different, I have more family than I know what to do with._

 

_That being said, I leave everything to Doctor Rodney McKay. Now Rodney don’t get all excited, there’s a reason for that. Since Teyla and Ronon are not from Earth, I can’t leave anything to them, so if I leave everything to you, you can make sure they benefit as well. Okay . . . so there’s a house that you guys can use for holidays when you visit Earth or honeymoons or even weddings - please don’t sell it, it was left to me by my Mom. I’ve got shares in Sheppard Utilities - Rodney maybe you can use one of your PhD’s to help the company or sell them to Dave or just reap the benefits. Before leaving for Atlantis I put all of my things into storage, the lawyer will give you the address - do whatever you want with the stuff. I own a 1979 Chevy Camaro, it’s also in storage - don’t sell that, it’s a classic; if Ronon gets his license let him drive it, it’s brilliant on the long open road. Which leaves my money; I don’t really get the opportunity to spend it when we’re in Pegasus so there’s a lot of it and I know you have your own Rodney - so when Teyla and Ronon are on Earth, buy them whatever they want or donate it all or whatever, you decide. I guess that’s it…_

 

_With that done, there’s something I’d like to say to each of you, things that I can now say because I’m dead. The lawyer says I can write you each a letter but I think seeing me saying it makes it more real._

 

_Dave, I’m sorry for so many things, I did what I thought best for myself and didn’t think about how it would affect you. I know it’s not the life you wanted but you’re better suited to it than me and you’ve done a lot better than I could have. You’re a better man than me Dave, and since Dad’s funeral I’ve been wondering if things were really as bad as I thought or if it was me that was the problem. Perhaps if I’d been different, done what Dad wanted me to do, things would’ve been better between all of us . . . but then I think about Atlantis, and she’s home to me Dave, more than anywhere on Earth has ever been, and I’m glad about how things turned out. I know at least that you are happy, a large part of that is because of your family and I’m glad you have them that at least one of us was able to make it work. I hope you’re not angry about my decision not to leave anything to you - Rodney, if Dave wants to use the house, let him - but if you knew these people you’d understand. Wish we had more time, but like Dad liked to remind us: everything happens for a reason._

 

_Teyla . . . I suppose you know how grateful I am to have met you; you have been the sister I never knew I wanted and I… well yes. Give my greetings to Kanaan and Torren, oh and maybe it’s time for another child. As leader of the Athosians you have to lead by example, and since the Wraith are no longer the threat they were, you should definitely be increasing the population. Take care of yourself, your family, and the others. I’ll miss you._

 

_Ronon, I’ve left instructions with Lorne that you are now the team leader of AR-1 and get the final say on who will be the fourth member; I’ve given him a list of the soldiers who I think is best suited. Let Teyla deal with any people you come across, listen to her when she speaks. Keep Rodney safe, keep an eye out for citrus, distract him by pointing out anything that looks like it could be Ancient tech, and if there’s a crisis let him deal with it his way. Amelia is a good woman, if you love each other get married and then have babies - you too have a people to repopulate. Oh and John is a great name, ask Torren._

 

 

_And last but not least, Rodney. Tell Jeannie I’m sorry I never found the time to visit, offer her the use of the house, put away some money for Madison’s university education, oh and tell them it’s about time for another child; John is a great name for a boy!_

_Let my death go buddy, even if it was suspicious, I’m dead and gone, but Atlantis and the Pegasus Galaxy needs you. Take care of her Rodney, keep her safe! Talk to Woolsey, make sure Lorne is made permanent military commander - he knows how things work and cares for the city and her people. Don’t leave the team, they might not look it but Teyla and Ronon need you, and Radek is more than capable of running things while you’re gone._

_Don’t wait too long before proposing and then marrying Jennifer; if you love her and she loves you, go for it. You deserve to be happy Rodney. And then have kids because you have to pass on your McKay genius; John is a great name or maybe Maximilian - my unofficial middle name. My Mom was of Austrian descent and found the monarchies interesting - Dave’s middle name is Leopold. Live long and prosper old friend…_

 .

 .

 .

_Now that I’m dead, there’s no fear of repercussions and I promised myself that I would do this - my last chance and all. I love you Rodney. I love you like I haven’t loved anyone, not even Nancy. I have for the longest time - if I died saving you, it’s because I love you. Being your friend has been enough, seeing you happy with Jennifer has been enough, knowing that Teyla and Ronon are there to keep you safe, now that I’m not, is going to have to be enough. I’m sorry if it’s selfish of me to leave you with this but I needed you to know that I loved you Rodney._


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally managed to get this done ^_^ despite **someone** distracting me!

Dave couldn’t quite believe what he had just heard; his brother had spent the last few years in love with a man, a man who had been his best friend and who he had to watch love someone else. Dave had not seen much of John between the time he had left to join the Air Force and their father’s funeral; both of their weddings, sometimes when he was on military leave and when he had announced that he and Nancy had gotten a divorce, but when he had visited after the funeral he had seemed at ease with himself, relaxed in a way Dave had not seen him before. At the time he had dismissed the idea, thinking he did not know his brother well enough to judge, but now he wonders if maybe it was because of Atlantis; he had found a home, family, and someone to love.

Turning to look at the man in question, he couldn’t help but wonder how and why his brother had fallen in love with him; Doctor Rodney McKay did not have the looks he normally thought of as handsome, he was obviously brilliant – had made a point of stating that he was not a medical doctor when introduced but instead a scientist with two PhD’s – arrogant also, and not easily pleased – had sneered as he entered the room and pulled up his nose at the coffee Dave had served him. General O’Neill cleared his throat then, snapping him out of his reverie in time to see Doctor McKay flush a bright red beneath their gazes before fleeing the house. 

“Well that was unexpected!” the older man drawled with an amused smile as he watched the scientist leave; Colonel Carter stood as if to follow but he shook his head at her and she sat back down.

“Not completely,” the woman John had cared for as a sister said quietly, exchanging a glance with Ronon, “We have long suspected John’s feelings towards Rodney but did not expect he would ever say anything, even like this now that he is gone.”

Quiet fell over the room once again as Dave switched off the television and placed the disc back in its cover, holding it out to Col. Carter who responded by telling him that that copy was for him. Dave placed it on the coffee table before him as she continued to speak, “John made another request we would like to honour, he asked that you be allowed to visit Atlantis.”

“That would be lovely,” Teyla enthused in her quiet way, smiling at him gently, “I am sure everyone back home would like that. And I could introduce you to my son, Torren John.”

Dave smiled in return before replying that he would love to see Atlantis for himself; just the thought of where the city was located and how he would get there was enough to get him to want to go right now. As he made the necessary arrangements with the General and Colonel, Ronon and Teyla excused themselves and left the house. 

When they finally made their way out, Colonel Carter handing him a card with a number he could call if he had any questions – there were no other details on the card – the three civilians were standing together off to one side; Ronon had a hand on Rodney’s shoulder while Teyla stood tucked into his side. They turned when they heard voices while Rodney continuing to stare ahead; Dave said his goodbyes, before making his way towards them.

“Doctor McKay, I was hoping I could have a word?” Teyla smiled at him before glancing at Ronon and tilting her head towards the car, the taller man nodded and then they moved away. Dave could see the tension in the other man’s shoulders as he slowly turned around; his mouth was twisted, his forehead furrowed and his slightly red eyes narrowed as he scowled at him – Dave suddenly found himself at a loss for words. The scientist huffed as he glanced over Dave’s shoulder, clearly impatient to be away. “I don’t actually know what to say,” he said, deciding to go with honesty, “Except that I would like to get to know you better.”

Rodney’s eyes snapped to his, his surprise clear, before he stammered out an answer, “It’s not . . . I don’t . . .” he took a deep breath then, closing his eyes before continuing. “We go back to Atlantis tomorrow; you could email, we check in once a week? That’s about the only way…”

Dave smiled as he offered the piece of paper he had scrawled his email address onto before coming outside, “You can send me a blank email and I’ll respond to that.” McKay nodded as he took it, and then stared at the hand Dave still held out before slowly taking it. “My condolences for your loss Doctor McKay, you knew my brother better than I ever did,” he said as he gave the hand in his a firm shake.


	7. Chapter 7

As they drove away from the Sheppard residence, Rodney found himself playing with the scrap of paper Dave Sheppard had written his email address on. His mind was quiet; he couldn’t remember it ever being that way. When they had driven to the house Ronon had sat in front, now though Rodney was squished between the Satedan and Teyla, whose smaller hand had found its way into his. The drive back seemed much shorter than the drive there and before he knew it, they were entering the nondescript warehouse they had been beamed into. They were barely inside when they were beamed up onto the Daedalus, where O’Neill ushered them into a briefing room.

Once inside and seated, except Ronon who was leaning against the wall behind Rodney’s chair, the General started speaking. Saying how it went without saying that they had to be careful with whom they discussed what John had said and that he would see to it that all other copies of the recording were destroyed. Rodney protested then, without meaning to, that he also wanted a copy and after a moment the other man agreed. Before being dismissed to be beamed back to Cheyenne Mountain, O’Neill told Rodney that the lawyer assigned to executing John’s will would be waiting there for him.

-

Once the jumper had safely landed back in Atlantis Rodney sighed in relief, it was good to finally be home. Both Cheyenne Mountain and the Midway Station had been stifling, all he wanted was Atlantis’ sprawling towers and fresh sea air. Glancing at his two companions he found them watching him; they’d been hovering ever since the Sheppard residence, one or both of them always at his side. He nodded at them then and made his way out of the jumper, picking his bags up on the way, Ronon and Teyla immediately fell in step on either side of him. 

It was the middle of the night in Atlantis, which he was glad for because it meant Woolsey and Lorne would not be there to greet them when they arrived, so they made their way quickly to the transporter and the floor of their quarters. 

He was surprised, and yet not, when his companions walked him to his door where Teyla rested a hand on his arm, “Rodney, we are here should you ever need us.”

“Yeah,” Ronon rumbled, dropping a hand onto his shoulder and squeezing it at the same time that Teyla squeezed his arm. He smiled tightly at them as he nodded once before making his way into his room. 

He wasn’t tired, wasn’t in the mood to delve back into his responsibilities as Chief Science Officer, and did not want company either. So he changed the bedding, unpacked his bags, repacked his closet, took out his laundry, tidied the room a bit and when he glanced at his watch, he saw that a little over an hour had passed by. 

Deciding to go through his emails, he dropped into the chair at his desk and got started. When next he glanced at his watch, he was glad to see it was an hour to dawn. It was then that he noticed the disk at his elbow; it was John’s recorded last will and testament, and against his better judgement he watched it.

Ronon found him slumped at his desk later that morning; he’d cried himself to sleep watching the video, which was paused on John with a hand raised to his neck in a familiar gesture as the man looked off to the side, a look of embarrassment/nervousness/irritation/ _something_ on his face. The big man had hauled him in for a hug, releasing him only when Rodney had returned it, and then dragged him to his bathroom to shower.

-

They had a briefing with Woolsey, Lorne, Radek and Jennifer after breakfast; the city was still running smoothly as ever. Since walking into the conference room and seeing the four people gathered there, Rodney had had two things running through his mind: **Jennifer** and **Atlantis**. Jennifer because not once while he had been gone had he thought of her and was he supposed to tell her – this was something you told your fiancée right? And Atlantis because John had loved her, had been willing on more than one occasion to give up his life for her – did that fall to him now?

After the briefing he rushed away with Radek, not liking the sympathetic looks Jennifer had been giving him, he didn’t need that at the moment. He needed to be distracted, from his thoughts, from the loop playing in his head of John saying that he loved him, from Jennifer, from Atlantis. 

As soon as he was in his lab he started to compile a mental list of projects he could undertake, but dismissed them one after the other when they all revolved around the city. It was during lunch in Teyla’s quarters, watching Ronon toss Torren up into the air the way he had seen John do before, that the idea came to him. 

-

He avoided his quarters as much as he could, where his laptop was still open and paused on John, falling asleep while working most nights. He had also managed to avoid Jennifer for several days, until he looked up at the smell of food and found her standing there with two trays in her hands. He usually skipped breakfast, had lunch in Teyla’s quarters, and either Ronon or Teyla would bring his dinner to the lab. Frowning, he tapped a few keys and all the monitors went dark before turning to her, “Jennifer, this is a surprise!”

“You’ve been so busy trying to catch up on everything you missed while you were gone and checking that everyone has been doing their work properly, that we haven’t had a chance to catch up,” she said as she smiled at him, walking over and placing a tray in front of him. “I hoped we could chat while we ate?”

“Sure,” he responded nodding, already digging into his food not sure what to say to her. He still didn’t know if he should tell her; he had emailed Jeannie asking for advice but wouldn’t receive an answer until they checked in with Earth again.

Jennifer ended up doing most of the talking; telling him about her day and the voodoo she had practiced, until their trays were both empty. And then she had reached across and placed her hand on his, he had to fight the urge to pull his hand away, asking him how it went with John’s brother. He had pulled away then, stood, walked across the room, turned around to face her not sure what he was going to say but sure he had to say something. But then a call came for her, she was needed in the infirmary; Rodney’s shoulders dropped in relief once she was gone.

-

After talking to the lawyer, Rodney had sent Dave Sheppard a blank email, still undecided on whether or not he wanted to correspond with the other man. When a response came it was not what he expected, instead of questions he found a folder attached, a folder containing pictures; all of them of John. John through the years, John riding a bicycle, John and Dave at the beach, John as a boy with a beautiful woman he assumed was John’s mother, a sullen teenage John with a stern looking man he assumed was John’s father, family portraits, John with his new bride, a happy John on his wedding day, and there were two more emails of more pictures. The fourth email told Rodney about the Sheppard family, the fifth contained stories Dave could remember from their childhood, the sixth explained John’s estrangement from his family. 

He received all of them while still on Earth, and they had left early evening the day after he had met the other man. Rodney had sent one in return, telling Dave briefly about his own family. And then he had emailed Jeannie telling her everything, attached Dave’s emails and asked for her help. He had received a response from his sister while at the Midway Station saying that she was going to fly down to meet Dave in person and would get back to him.

-

With the Apollo soon within beaming range, Rodney rushes to his quarters to clean himself up for Dave Sheppard’s arrival, coming to a stop when the door slides open to reveal Jennifer seated at his desk, watching the video of John. 

In the weeks since the dinner they had shared in his lab, they had eaten together in her quarters a few times but he never stayed longer than the meal. His excuse always that he was too busy - when she tried to see him, spend time with him, **talk** to him.

Rodney rushed across the room, snatching up the laptop, “What are you doing?” He was furious, how dare she! In the back of his mind a voice reminds him that Jeannie’s advice was that he tell Jennifer, but it hadn’t felt right to share that with her.

“I’m sorry Rodney,” she said as she stood, “I came by looking for you and saw it open and paused on John . . . I didn’t mean to watch it.”

“So it just started playing by itself!” Narrowing his eyes at her, he demanded, “How much of it did you see?”

She dropped her gaze, bringing her hands up to fiddle with her jacket, “All of it…”

Rodney stared at her, “How could you?!?”” he accused.

Jennifer stepped towards him, hand reached out, but he stepped back. “Why didn’t you tell me Rodney?”

“Because it doesn’t matter.”

“How could it not matter? John told you he loved you!”

Rodney made a strangle noise in the back of his throat, “John is dead! It doesn’t matter what he felt!”

Jennifer glanced away, then back at him, “And if you had seen it before he died, would you have acted on it?”

Rodney stared at her as if she were dense, “John loved me, not the other way around. And you can’t let what someone says when they think they’re dying, or in this case already dead, determine your actions. You’re always most honest with death looming.”

“Why did you invite me to go with you to that scientific presentation?”

Brows furrowing at the change in subject, “You seemed interested in me, receptive to me asking you out…” Rodney trailed off when she paled, her eyes widening, hands shaking. “Jennifer?”

“When you were suffering from the Second Childhood you made recordings of yourself, initially it was to track your regression but you also started to include the things you wanted to say before you forgot,” Rodney nodded for her to go on when she paused. He had watched all of the recordings, unnerved at his childlike behaviour. “You said that you love me, that you’d loved me for some time.”

“What?” Rodney exploded, “that wasn’t part of any of the recordings I watched!”

“I removed it . . . I have the only copy,” she said, smiling at him as she flushed.

Rodney didn’t know how to react, “So because of that we are together?” He moved around her and placed the laptop on the desk. “How long have we known each other Jennifer? By now you should know that I’m not the kind of person to talk about love easily. We’re engaged and I haven’t even said it, except in your mind I have. You have a recording of me, not even the real me but a me that has mentally regressed, telling you that I love you. And you’ve based our relationship on that! I . . . I have to go,” Rodney fled the room not sure where he was going but needing to be away. Jennifer followed, calling for him to stop but he ignored her as he got into the transporter and chose a location at random.

As he made his way down the passage it opened up onto, Chuck’s voice came to him through his headset letting him know that Mister Sheppard would be beamed down soon. Running a hand through his hair he realised he hadn’t showered and changed like he’d wanted, and then turned around and made his way to the gateroom.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have not edited it so there might be errors - my apologies.
> 
> The end is in sight! ^_^

As he came rushing through the doors into the gateroom Rodney sniffed at himself surreptitiously; he couldn’t remember when last he had showered but at least he didn’t smell bad, at least not to himself. As he started smoothing down his hair and righting his clothes, lights sparkled in front of the gate and when they disappeared Dave Sheppard and several other people stood there.

Rodney rushed forward towards the other man immediately, “Dave! Now I know you are curious about the city and all the people but,” Rodney stopped moving long enough to take the bag from Dave’s hand and thrust it at Lorne, “there is something I **have** to show you.”

“Rodney!” Teyla reprimanded, causing him to pause in hauling their visitor out of the room.

“Oh, you remember Teyla and Ronon right? They’re very glad to see you again. The man holding your bag is Major Lorne, current military commander of Atlantis, and the man next to him is Richard Woolsey, who is the operational leader of Atlantis; they are all very pleased to meet you.” Rodney said as he resumed his hold on Dave’s arm and started pulling him towards the doorway again only to pause and say over his shoulder, “Colonel Ellis, it’s good to see you again,” with a short wave.

\---

Dave stared at the slowly rotating 3D model on the screens in front of him in what Rodney would describe as awe. “You designed this?” he questioned incredulously.

“Of course,” Rodney said happily as he rocked back on his heels, all the while grinning.

Dave turned to look at him, “Because of John?”

“Yes,” the scientist said mildly as he nodded his head.

Dave turned his gaze back to the screens, “He always did like Ferris Wheels . . .”

“I know!” Rodney exclaimed happily, wilfully ignoring the other man’s wistful tone, “So what do you think of it?”

“It’s amazing,” Dave said as he smiled at Rodney.

“Thank you!” Rodney said before launching animatedly into an explanation of what he was seeing. “In order to design this I looked at Earth’s largest Ferris Wheels focusing on just two; the London Eye and the Singapore Flyer. Like the Flyer, it has a two leg support structure; I thought of doing a single A-frame like the London Eye but I didn’t really like the diagonalness of it. It’s 180 meters tall and 160 meters in diameter . . . in American that is approximately 591 feet tall and 525 feet in diameter. There are 30 passenger cabins that can take 30 people each so that it carries 900 passengers at capacity on each trip. I wanted to do round cabins suspended between double rims but then the rims would spoil the view during parts of the rotation, so I went with the shape of the jumpers which you haven’t seen yet but they look like that,” he said tapping on the screen so that it zoomed in on a cabin. “The cabins rotate on tracks as the wheel turns so that the floor of the cabin is always facing the ground; I wanted the floor to be glass as well but because of the tracks it wasn’t structurally sound, instead there are two large glass panels. Each cabin has a cushioned bench seat, as well as an attendant and,” he stressed excitedly, “interactive glass walls; you touch it and it describes what you are seeing!” Tapping the screen again, it zoomed out to show the entire wheel which slowly started turning. “I have Jeannie looking at locations in different cities but I already know where I want it built-”

“Wait,” Dave said interrupting Rodney, “you want to build it?”

Rodney frowned at him, tilting his head to the side before answering slowly, “Yes?”

“Oh. I- I guess I didn’t expect that,” he murmured wonderingly, turning his gaze on Rodney again, “In John’s honour?”

Rodney nodded, “I know it might seem excessive or ridiculous or whatever since I’ve already set up a bursary fund thing to send students with the potential to become SGC employees to the proper universities but,” he sat down heavily on the seat next to Dave and watched the wheel turn. “At first I needed something to work on to distract me but the longer I worked on it, the more I wanted to see it built.” Neither of them said anything, both lost in thought. “We have a team dinner once a week in Teyla’s quarters and John would play with Torren afterwards; he’d toss him in the air or make him fly like Superman or hold him out flat and rotate him telling him he was a Ferris Wheel . . . I watched Ronon play with Torren after we got back, and that’s when the idea came to me, and now I have to see it built!”

“Then let me help you,” Dave said as he rested a hand on Rodney’s shoulder and gave it a quick squeeze, “for John.”

Before Rodney could respond, Richard Woolsey’s voice came over the city’s PA system, _“Doctor McKay, Mister Sheppard is an honoured guest . . . could you please bring him back!”_

\---

That first night they had a formal dinner in the conference room; the various department heads and their seconds as well as other key persons were all in attendance, all vying for Dave Sheppard’s attention. Rodney didn’t stay long, all the while avoiding Jennifer, until they started sharing stories about John and then he returned to his lab.

The next day was to be the first day of Dave’s tour of the city; the other man had specifically asked that Rodney conduct it, which had the scientist nervous for reasons he did not like thinking about. Half an hour after breakfast, as Rodney showed him the lab where they studied Ancient artefacts, they discovered that Dave had the gene and were immediately ordered to the infirmary. Carson was overjoyed at having his hypothesis about sibling expression of the ATA gene confirmed. He immediately started talking about the tests he wanted to conduct to measure Dave’s expression of the gene but Rodney interrupted him, saying that it was his scheduled time with Dave and that Carson should talk to Woolsey or Teyla about when their guest would be available for tests. 

The rest of the tour continued uneventfully and after lunch Rodney handed Dave over to Lorne for his aerial tour of the exterior of the city. That night Teyla escorted Dave to his lab, leaving the two men alone once Rodney confirmed he had had something to eat; he watched the other man expectedly, not sure why he was there or what he might want or whether or not Rodney should say something.

“I sat with Doctor Keller at supper tonight,” he said as he peered at the various things laying scattered on one of the tables, “did you tell her?”

“No,” Rodney stated forcefully as he glared at one of his screens which showed the city’s schematics.

“She seems worried about you,” the other man continued as he picked up and examined something, “asked me how you were which I thought was peculiar since Evan told me the two of you were engaged.” 

He turned to look at Rodney, an eyebrow raised which Rodney answered with his glare and turned to the work before him, “We are engaged, what does that matter?”

Dave sighed as he placed the thing down and made his way towards Rodney, “Why are you avoiding her?”

“I don’t have to explain it to you,” Rodney said as he pressed his lips together tightly.

“I suppose,” the other man murmured as he sat and after a moment he spoke again, “Do you love about her?”

“What kind of question is that! I asked her to marry me so of course I love her,” Rodney asserted loudly as he hopped from his seat and turn to stare at Dave.

The corner of Dave’s mouth tilted up, “Then let go of your anger and tell her that Rodney.”

“Everything is different now,” Rodney whined.

“How so?” Dave asked perplexed.

Rodney sighed as he rubbed at his eyes, “When I asked Jennifer to marry me, I asked her for one more year on Atlantis and then we would move to Earth permanently.”

“I don’t see how John’s death would change that,” Dave said, taking note of the other man’s wince at the mention of his brother.

Rodney turned wide eyes on him, “Didn’t you hear John say that Atlantis needs me, that I have to take care of her, keep her safe? How can I leave now?” he asked imploringly. “The city was everything to him,” the scientist dropped his eyes and looked away, “I owe it to him to stay!”

“I am sure if John knew about your promise to Jennifer he would want you to keep it; the people here, they can take care of the city just fine without you Rodney.”

“I can’t,” he assured shaking his head, “It felt like a dying wish, and after everything else it’s the least I can do.”

Dave nodded understandingly; John had loved him and never expected anything in return, “Then explain it to Jennifer, maybe she will be willing to stay?”

“She wants to return to Earth because of her elderly father,” Rodney explained quietly, “and I promised her we would go back.”

“You are going to have to talk to her Rodney,” Dave said after a moment of silence as he relaxed back into his seat, “you cannot just leave things hanging like this.” Rodney’s only response was a tired nod. “Oh and before I forget again, Jeannie sent you something; I have it in my room.”

The something turned out to be a handwritten letter, a large container and a cat. The letter explained that she thought he could use the company of an affectionate feline which she had housetrained despite Kaleb’s allergies; she hadn’t named him but Madison called him ‘Sock’ for his one white paw while the rest of him was black and Kaleb had called him ‘Allergen’. The container contained a kitty bed, a litter, toys, food and various other things he might need in order to look after the cat properly. She ended off the letter by saying what a really nice man General Jack O’Neill was and that he (Meredith) should be sure to thank him for allowing him to have a pet. After reading the letter Rodney stared down at the cat which was rubbing against his legs affectionately and thanked Dave for looking after it during the trip to Atlantis, then gathered his new pet in his arms and left to show it off to Torren.

\---

The week passed quickly, Rodney gave Dave a thorough tour of the city while Lorne took him out in a puddlejumper to show him the city, the planet and some of the solar system they were currently in which turned into flying lessons; according to Lorne the other man was a natural due to his strong expression of the gene - not as strong as John’s was according to Carson. Woolsey and Teyla had put together an itinerary for Dave, which covered the week he would be on the city, and exposed him to their day-to-day activities. He joined their team on a visit through the gate to New Athos, he had been nervous beforehand but once on the other side, he stared at everything in open wonder and asked them all kinds of questions about their missions and the other planets they had visited. Teyla spent time teaching him how to use the Bantos rods, Ronon made him jog with him one morning because Woolsey had refused to allow the Satedan to spar with their guest, Carson managed to get Dave into the infirmary for a few hours on his second day in the city, and of course he and Woolsey had sat together talking over bourbon and cigars.

Dave spent a few hours each day with Rodney in his lab talking, they mostly discussed the scientist’s ideas for Sheppard Utilities but on occasion Dave managed to coax the other man to talk about what life has been like in the Pegasus Galaxy, and on the rare occasion Rodney would talk about John. 

Having seen a cleanly shaven and not-dishevelled Rodney having lunch with Doctor Keller, Dave brought it up one night and received a small smile in answer. “We spoke, she understands that I want to stay but there is still the issue of her father. I’ve talked about it with Woolsey, about maybe bringing him here to stay with us; he has agreed to assist us in making it happen.”

“You want your elderly future father-in-law to come live on Atlantis?” Dave asked surprised, “Is it safe enough?”

Rodney’s mouth twisted as he answered, “There are still some dangers in this galaxy but it’s safer than it was . . . do you think it’s a bad idea?” 

Rodney was looking at him as if he had the answer to everything, and Dave found himself wondering if the scientist had ever looked at John that way and how his brother had responded. “If this is what you and Jennifer want, and the IOA and SGC will allow it, then it’s the best possible solution.”

Rodney bit his lip, “Jennifer doesn’t know…”

“Rodney,” Dave sighed exasperated, “you can’t make a decision like this without her input; he is her father after all!”

“I know,” the other man whined, “I just- I wanted to get Woolsey’s opinion first, and then maybe ask O’Neill, and then tell her…”

“Believe me Rodney,” Dave said as he placed a hand on the scientist’s shoulder, “that the best thing would be to ask her first.”

“Okay fine,” Rodney huffed, “I’ll go later.” The room fell quiet as Dave settled in his seat and Rodney fiddled with something until suddenly the scientist’s head perked up, “Do you want to race remote controlled cars?”

\---

While Dave packed his bags on the morning he was to leave Atlantis Rodney paced the length of the room talking at a rapid pace. “I’ve emailed you all of the details; Jeannie will handle things in Canada but I need you to deal with the Americans. You both now have access to the bank account I’ve set up for the project. Make sure all of the companies stick to my budget and my timeframe; they’ve signed contracts stating that they would! If there are any problems, contact O’Neill and tell him it’s an emergency and you have to speak to me, if I’m not here tell Woolsey to send for me immediately. If I have to come back to Earth I will! I will not have some two-bit, thinks he knows it all engineer-”

“Rodney!” Teyla shouted from where she stood in the doorway, a smirking Ronon next to her, taking a breath she calmed herself and smiled at Dave. “Everything is ready for your departure.”

“Thank you Teyla,” Dave said as walked up to her, “it has been wonderful seeing Atlantis-”

Rodney groaned loudly from where he stood, interrupting Dave which Teyla glared at him for. “I’ll be in the jumper bay,” the scientist rushed to say as he all but ran from the room.

Dave would be returning to Earth via the Midway Station and because of his flying lessons he would be piloting the jumper himself. He would be accompanied by two marines who were returning home permanently, one of whom would act as co-pilot, and a scientist who would stay on Midway. Rodney would never admit it aloud but he had enjoyed having the other Sheppard in the city, it had almost been like having John back; Dave had listened to him, responded intelligently, and even raced cars with him. And now Dave was leaving, returning to Earth, and once again Rodney would be without his best friend; suddenly the thought of standing in a room filled with jumpers, saying goodbye to Dave was unappealing and Rodney veered off the path that would take him there. 

Tapping his headset, Rodney asked Teyla to inform Dave that something urgent had come up and that he would speak to him the next day when they checked in with Midway. As he stepped into a transporter, he removed his headset and pressed the screen for the location furthest from the central tower.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've decided to make this 10 chapters and an epilogue. I really struggled to get this one out, I've been forcing myself to work on it because I want to finish it so badly but there has been no motivation to write at all! Hope no one is disappointed, although I wouldn't blame you.
> 
> I apologise for any errors, I am just too tired to read through it properly.

“Rodney,” Teyla’s voice floated through the city via the P.A. system, “it has been nine days, please return to us.” Teyla made the request every evening that the scientist remained missing, and still there was no sign of him.

“We only wish to assure ourselves that you are alive and well Rodney,” Teyla continued as she watched a frustrated Ronon pace. The Satedan had led the search parties, and when Lorne could no longer send men out into the city, he had continued alone until Richard Woolsey had ordered him to stop. His search had been futile; the resourceful scientist had masked his location within the city, and nothing Radek did could unmask it, so they had no idea where in the city Rodney could be. The only thing they knew for sure was that he was still in the city; there had been countless improvements to Atlantis’ systems that they had not made, no unscheduled gate activations, and all jumpers were accounted for.

“Please Rodney, Torren has been asking for you; he cannot understand why you have left so soon after John and without saying goodbye,” in her room, Jennifer sat on her bed staring at the door with unseeing eyes as she listened to the other women try to coax her fiancé out of hiding. 

“Nobody will make you leave the city Rodney,” the familiar voice whispered to him as he wedged himself into a dark corner on one of Atlantis’ lowest floors, “we would never make you leave!”

And as he slipped into sleep he mumbled, “My city, my Atlantis, must protect her, must keep her safe…”

\---

[Nine days before…]

Rodney waited the two days Dave was on Midway Station before speaking to Jennifer about her father; the other man had badgered him about it until he had promised that he would. They were having lunch together in his lab when he finally brought up the topic of her father, and then explained his plan to her.

Jennifer dropped her fork into her tray as she stared at him incredulously, “You want to move my sickly father from the home he shared with my mother and raised me in, to Atlantis? To the Pegasus Galaxy where there are Wraith and Genii and bugs that suck the life out of you and countless other things that are dangerous and want to kill us! You promised me a year Rodney, one year and then we would return to Earth permanently! And then John died, and suddenly you want to spend the rest of your life here? Well I don’t; I hate the constant fear that we could die any day, I’m tired of seeing the same people day in and day out, I miss buildings Rodney! Buildings and trees and grass and cars and malls and being able to lose myself in the crowds and hustle of a real city. I want to go home Rodney, home to Earth, to my father, to a normal job where there’s more flu and less major surgery.”

She stood and made her way towards him, taking his hands in hers as she continued to speak, “I love you Rodney, and I want to marry you, and maybe someday have your children but it’s time for you to make a decision. Is John’s request more important than your promise to me? You’ve confessed your love for me, asked me to marry you; you were prepared to build a future with me on Earth. John is dead Rodney, gone, he would understand because he loved you, he would want you happy; leave Atlantis in the hands of the other people…”

Rodney stared at their hands, at the ring on her finger and remembered the feel of a different set of hands as they corrected his hold on a pistol the very first time he had gone to the gun range. John’s hands had been bigger than his, the skin dry and hard with callouses from holding weapons and handling yokes. John had wanted him to be happy, had told him to marry Jennifer, to have kids but John had also asked him to take care of Atlantis, to keep her safe . . . John had loved him! John wanted him to be happy **and** to take care of Atlantis!

Looking up, he met Jennifer’s eyes, “I do love you and I do want to marry you Jennifer, but I can’t leave Atlantis. I hav-”

“No,” Jennifer interrupted bluntly as she pulled her hands away, “you can’t have both Rodney. We can either leave when the Apollo returns or we can use the Bridge, but we **will** be returning to Earth. You promised me!” She left the lab then, striding away angrily as Rodney stared after her.

That night he dreamt of leaving Atlantis on the Apollo, marrying Jennifer in a small ceremony, the years passing pleasantly as he lectured at a nearby university while she worked at a local hospital, raising their two children; a boy and girl (Rudolf and Catherine after Jennifer’s grandparents), he’d lost contact with his sister and Dave, until one day he reads about the Stargate Program that has been declassified; eager he searches for information on Atlantis, and that is when it becomes a nightmare. A new alien race had flourished in the Wraith’s place; their first target had been Atlantis but they had not attacked the city directly, instead they deployed several small vessels to strategically place bombs on the surface of the planet so that the resultant explosion would destroy it and everything else on it. There had been no warning and no time for the evacuation protocols, Atlantis was lost. In one fell swoop, the aliens had wiped out their biggest threat in the galaxy, as well as the city Rodney had loved and yearned for, and all the people he had come to know as family. 

Rodney woke to a wet pillow and tears in his eyes, and vowed that as long as he lived, he would never let that happen to Atlantis; scrambling out of bed and into clothes, he’d packed a bag and disappeared into the city.

\---

He woke to a rough tongue licking his chin, and the mewing of a hungry cat; digging into his pack he pulled out the bag of cat food and poured some out for the feline. “Today John,” he said as he chewed on an energy bar, “we will have to venture to the upper floors for more food but we’ll do that later; we must continue our search.”

Once they had both eaten and had water, he packed up his things and stood, scooping up the cat and placing him securely on his shoulder as he did. “I don’t understand why the Ancients couldn’t just create a detailed map of the city with proper labels and explanations, then I’d know exactly where we were going,” Rodney sighed as he bent and gently picked up the ice box which contained vials of John’s blood and slung it over his shoulder. It had been surprisingly easy to remove them from the infirmary, and if he was still in contact with anybody up there he would have berated them for their uselessness. After a quick check of the city’s systems to ensure that everything was in perfect working order, he continued his search for a cloning lab.

Later that day when the city’s alarms started blaring, Rodney was elbows deep repairing a console in a lab that looked promising, the sudden noise caused John to snarl and hiss as he tumbled from his perch on the console’s control panel. “I just checked the city’s systems five minutes ago,” he mumbled annoyed at the interruption, “and Jennifer expects me to leave the city to them? I think not!”

Rodney slowly freed himself from the console before grabbing his tablet and dropping to sit on the ground, John continued to growl unhappily as the noise continued as he padded over to climb onto and then curl up in Rodney’s lap. “So glad someone agrees with me,” Rodney murmured happily as he smoothed a hand down the cat’s back. “Now, let’s see what those morons up there have done.” 

A quick run through of Atlantis’ systems brought up nothing, a second more detailed look still showed nothing, and after a third thorough search of everything he could think of, Rodney still found nothing wrong with the city. As he continued to pet the cat now rumbling in his lap, he toyed with the idea of digging his earpiece out of his bag and finding out what they’d done, but the sudden realisation that that might be exactly what they want, had him shoving his tablet away.

Leaning back against the console, he prepared himself to wait them out, all the while cursing them for their stupidity. After a while the alarm became almost hypnotic and Rodney found himself drifting in the feeling of almost sleep, only to have that broken by Radek’s voice over the P.A. system. “Rodney stop it,” the Czech demanded sounding harried, “is not funny anymore!”

“It wasn’t funny to begin with,” Rodney shouted at the ceiling, not fooled by the other scientist’s ploy; on his lap John growled at his outburst. “Yes yes,” he said as he continued petting the feline, “but do they really think I am going to just give in if they pretend they didn’t orchestrate this to get me to radio them?”

“Doctor McKay,” Richard Woolsey started diplomatically, “please put an end to the alarm; it is quite difficult to get any work done.”

“What do you think John? Do you think they could get Woolsey in on a plan like this? Or maybe they left him out of the plan because whether he was in or not, he would still want me to switch it off?” Rodney sat puzzling over who could have come up with the plan, and who they would have recruited to help. Obviously Radek had to be in on it, he was the only one besides Rodney himself who could pull something like this off. Could Zelenka be the mastermind?

Pulling his tablet towards him, Rodney got to work trying to figure out how Radek had done it, and if there was a way to switch it off. “Rodney please,” Teyla said, her voice sounded tired and resigned, “it has been almost two hours of this constant noise, please just switch it off.”

“For you Teyla I will, and then I’m going to teach Radek what happens when you mess with a genius!”

\---

After hours of searching Rodney still had not found how Radek had done it, and with the beginning of a headache from the incessant alarm and John’s yowling, he rummaged through his bag until he found his earpiece and put it in. “Radek what the hell have you done?” he demanded once he patched into the city’s frequency.

“I have not done anything Rodney,” the other scientist replied uncertainly, “have you not done this?”

“No I have not!” he snapped back, irritated that they would think he would do something so inane and grating.

“Then what caused it?” Radek wondered aloud, “I checked systems; nothing, no quarantines, no impending attacks, no danger to city and people…”

“What about devices brought into the city?” Rodney asked as he continued tapping at his tablet.

There was a pause before Radek replied, “Nothing brought back from last few missions.”

“Wait,” Rodney said as he noticed something on his tablet, “check the long range sensors; there’s something there, very faint.”

“I will go to control room,” Rodney could hear as the other man started moving, “would be better with your help Rodney…”

Frustrated he tore his earpiece out, Radek was right of course; it would go quicker if he was there, in the control room, instead of somewhere in the bowels of the city. “This is the very reason I want to stay, to protect the city,” he told John as he lifted him and held him up to face him. “You asked me to keep her safe and sitting here isn’t going to accomplish that . . . time to head back up!”

After stuffing his things back into his bag and marking his current location on his tablet for future reference, he placed the cat onto his shoulder and made his way to the nearest transporter and then the control room. As he made his way towards the steps that would take him to the consoles, he heard a gruff voice call his name and suddenly he two arms were wrapping around him and his breath was being squeezed out of him. 

“It is good to see you Rodney,” Ronon roared happily as he continued to hug him, “you look better than I expected you would!”

“Ronon please,” Rodney wheezed out as he patted the other man’s shoulder until he was let go; John had sought shelter on his head, digging his claws into Rodney’s scalp. The Satedan grinned at his wince of pain as the cat arched his back and hissed at the big man; Ronon seemed amused by the cat’s antics as he removed him from Rodney’s head and placed him in the scientist’s hands.

“He is very protective of you,” he remarked loudly as he steered Rodney towards and then up the steps, removing his pack once he had reached the control room. “When you’re done here, come to Teyla’s quarters,” Ronon said into Rodney’s ear as he plucked John out of his hands and then left.

Rodney stared after him in quiet confusion until Radek noticed him and dragged him over to the screens as he explained what they had found, “A signal Rodney! Very weak signal yes but signal nonetheless.”

“Where is it coming from?” Rodney questioned as he looked at the data streaming on one of the laptops from the long range sensors.

Radek gazed at the screens, “Uhh yes, that we don’t know.”

“Doctor McKay, it is good to see you again,” Richard Woolsey said as he neared them, “Before you go about finding the origin of the signal, is there any way to deactivate the city’s alarm?”

“I have not found anything,” the Czech replied, “Rodney?”

Rodney had already started tracing the signal, which was made difficult by how weak it was, “Hmm?” Radek repeated Woolsey’s question which caused the head scientist to pause, stalk over to a different laptop and shooing away the technician before typing rapidly; the alarm dimmed but did not stop. “Best I can do,” he answered as he returned to finding the source of the signal.

\---

“It is a distress signal,” Rodney explained after too many hours spent tracing the signal with hardly any sleep, some food but mostly coffee. “It’s coming from this planet,” he gestured at one of the screens in the boardroom where Woolsey, Lorne, Jennifer, Carson, Teyla, Ronon, Radek and he were assembled, “which we’ve been to before. We as in John, Teyla, Ronon and I; I think it was in our fourth year, anyway there are no people on the planet but there is an Ancient outpost.”

Radek spoke then, excitedly, “It has no power supply but generates field that blocks all signals from getting into or out of outpost! We would have studied it-“

“Yes yes,” Rodney interrupted, “we had other things on our mind at the time. The point is, the outpost should not be able to send a distress signal! And it’s not just the existence of the signal which is worrisome; somehow the signal is being bounced from one Ancient outpost or remote lab to another to another until it reached us, Atlantis.” On one of the other screens was the path the signal was taking to get from the outpost to Atlantis. “Another impossibility is the fact that the city picked up on it at all because the signal is very very very weak. It’s like standing on one of the city’s piers and talking at a normal volume to someone here in the central tower, without the help of a radio.” Rodney turned to stare at the screens, “We’ve tried switching off the alarm but nothing is working, unless you want to go around and destroy all of the speakers. Good luck trying to find them; Radek and I looked and we still don’t know what they look like. The only solution would be to go and investigate the outpost.”

“I will go ready a team of marines,” Lorne said as he stood from his seat, “are you taking a jumper?”

“Yes,” Ronon replied as he too stood, “we can scout out the area while cloaked.” 

“It seems you have a go Doctor,” Woolsey said before turning to Ronon, “Any sign that this is a trap and I want you to destroy the outpost and return immediately to Atlantis, understood?” Ronon grinned as he nodded and then left the room with Lorne, discussing the best way to blow up the building.

“Perhaps Rodney, “Teyla said as she made her towards the scientist, “you would like a refreshing shower before we leave?”

“As long as there is time for food,” he replied on a sigh, too tired to argue against anything.

Teyla smiled as she slipped her arm in his and led him from the room, “I am sure there will be plenty of time for you to have something to eat Rodney.”

\---

By the time their preparations were complete, it was too late to head out as the information they had on the planet showed it was already late at night there. After a night of restful sleep, they headed out after breakfast; Rodney, Ronon, Teyla, their current fourth member (he never took the time to learn their names because they didn’t last long), and a team of marines led by Sergeant Stackhouse.

The outpost was not far from the gate and after two circuits of the area in the cloaked jumper; using the life signs detector Rodney interfaced with the ship, they determined there was no one there and landed. The marines did a quick sweep of the area before their team headed inside; Ronon and new guy taking point. 

As Rodney entered the building he turned on the lantern he was carrying and hurried towards the nearest console once he had gotten the go ahead from Ronon. Everything was still dead; nothing responded to his touch, and a quick check of his tablet showed that the jamming field was still active. He lifted up his lantern then and did a scan of the room and that was when he noticed the body lying in the furthest corner and rushed forward, only to stop dead when he recognised the man.

“Oh my god, it’s John!”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for the read, lemme know what you think using the comments thanks ^_^
> 
> Any help with tagging for this fic is most welcome!


End file.
